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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-07-23 Board of Health Minutes r Town of Reading R c'C E i V E D 9 s Meeting Minutes TOWN CLERK, 'JD:IMfOP o� Board - Committee - commission - Council: 2VI N0: 16 AM 11: 06 o Board of Health Date: 2020-07-23 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Location: Address: Session: Open Session Purpose: COVID-19 Discussion Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Chair Eleanor Shonkoff, Paula Curren, Kerry Dunnell Associate Members - Kevin Sexton and Richard Lopez Members - Not Present: Others Present: Assistant Town Manager lean Delios, Health Agent Laura Vlasuk, Public Health Nurse Kristine Harris, Town Clerk Laura Gemme, Human Resources Direct Sean Donahue Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Kim Saunders Topics of Discussion: This meeting was held remotely via Zoom. The Chair Eleanor Shonkoff called the meeting to order at 07:06 PM. Ms. Dunnell requested the July 16, 2020 Zoom Meeting link be sent to her. Ms. Shonkoff opened the meeting to public comment. Public Health Nurse Kristine Harris said she found mobile services available to do Covid-19 testing before the election. The town fee would be about $150 per test and would need approval before filling out the requisition. She opined she doesn't necessarily agree with mobile testing due to current CDC Guidelines and Massachusetts Department of Public Health Guidelines. Ms. Shonkoff asked for the information to be forwarded to the Board and include any concerns. Minutes Ms. Shonkoff requested staff review the June 8, 2020 draft minutes to verify some content. Ms. Vlasuk replied she will review the recording and make changes if needed. Ms. Shonkoff asked for the meeting recordings that the minutes were approved be posted on the website. Town Clerk Laura Gemme explained the only official recording is done by RCN and through Zoom is an unofficial recording because it is done through a third party. She cautioned Zoom meetings can be downloaded and edited. Assistant Town Manager Jean Delios said she has been reluctant to post recordings and this item is on an upcoming Command Meeting agenda. Ms. Shonkoff asked if RCN can receive the Zoom meetings and they post to YouTube? Ms. Gemme said RCN should be recording the meetings. Page I 1 Ms. Shonkoff requested tabling the review of June 11,2020 and June 22, 20202 until the next meeting. Covid-19 Testing Ms. Shonkoff said under the umbrella of Covid-19 Testing she will like to talk about election safety and poll workers, communication campaign, and offering testing for other employees and residents after the election. She said the library would like to know the difference in testing. Ms. Harris expressed her concern with offering testing and said having a mobile site for one day there is still room for people to be positive and not know, symptoms can be 2-14 days after exposure. She opined rapid testing is not very accurate. Ms. Gemme said she doesn't believe the town has the ability to make people take a test. Ms. Harris said some employees are requiring their staff answer a survey on how they are feeling before coming into work. Human Resources Director Sean Donahue said he will have to contact Labor Counsel on requiring employees to do anything in regards to Covid-19. Ms. Gemme asked that Labor Counsel know the testing is for election workers. Ms. Shonkoff said it is her memory the thought behind testing was to show good will from the town to provide testing before and after election. She suggested to limit the scope of the BOH recommendation to testing and how it directly affects public health. Ms. Gemme said as a supervisor of the election staff she would like to offer testing. Ms. Harris said it is not difficult to obtain a mobile unit but cautioned the coordination should be done soon if needed before election. Mr. Sexton asked about rapid testing from mobile unit. Ms. Harris responded rapid testing is available and results are within 15 minutes but the swab still goes to a lab for a complete test. She said some people who have had rapid testing had to be repeated because of an inconclusive test. Mr. Sexton said the complete test will take 48-72 hours, which is good for contact tracing. Ms. Dunnell said she struggles with offering testing because someone could test positive the next day, it might be better post-election testing. Mr. Richard Lopez said there are two potential reasons to test before and after - testing before will protect the public who are voting and testing after is to protect the volunteers. He suggested asking the survey questions before the election and perhaps take temperatures. Ms. Curren asked if testing after the election will be necessary if everyone follows protocols and wears a mask and social distance. Mr. Lopez opined reasons why to offer no testing. Ms. Shonkoff said the advice and the way the election is run is the same if there was testing or not. A negative reason for testing could create a false sense of security and is a substantial cost. Mr. Sexton brought up an earlier discussion and it was noted the only people who are going to be in close contact are the election workers, there is a minimal change of exposure between election worker and voter. He said since the test cannot be mandatory it might be beneficial to have the election workers answer the survey questions. Ms. Gemme said her concern is less than half of the election workers will be in close contact with each other for about 14 hours. Ms. Curren reiterated it is important for people to wear masks and social distance. Ms. Gemme expressed concern that she could lose some election workers if they are forced to test. Ms. Shonkoff said she doesn't believe the Board will require testing and proposed a screening survey. Ms. Harris asked about taking temperatures. Ms. Gemme said voters cannot be turned away if they have a temperature or has positive symptoms. Ms. Shonkoff asked if there is going to be an area if someone arrives with symptoms? Ms. Gemme responded having an area was discussed but there is not a plan. Mr. Sexton wanted to make sure it was noted that not recommending testing is based on data and not because of the cost. Ms. Dunnell said the State has a map that shows testing sites that do not charge. Ms. Gemme asked if one questionnaire can be done ahead of time and information about test sites be available and one be done that morning? This will help know in advance if someone has symptoms before the morning of the election. Mr. Donahue asked about the process of retaining the survey and if the papers will be destroyed that morning? Ms. Page 1 2 Gemme said she will make a note of a "yes" or"no" and shred the survey. The response column will not be labeled, and deleted after contact tracing. Mr. Lopez recommended doing the questionnaire only one to two days before election day. Ms. Gemme said an electronic version of the questionnaire could be difficult for some election workers. Ms. Shonkoff said it is her understanding the questionnaire would have to be kept in a file for period of time. Mr. Donahue discussed self-certification and said this is still under scrutiny. Ms. Shonkoff recommended asking people if they have any symptoms, having a log for contact tracing and not keeping documentation. Ms. Harris said she can provide information to the library regarding the different types of testing; however, she does not recommend testing unless someone is symptomatic or has a known exposure to someone who tested positive. Ms. Gemme asked how accurate is a rapid test? Ms. Harris opined that type of testing is not accurate. Ms. Gemme expressed concern for her election workers health and said she wouldn't want them have to work with someone who was exposed, even if the rapid test came back negative. Ms. Harris responded the current guidelines require people to self- isolate and quarantine. Mr. Sexton asked what extent of the survey do you require someone to stay home? Ms. Gemme asked if there is a problem for the town if an election worker is requested to stay home? Mr. Donahue replied he would hope someone who isn't feeling well would stay home on their own. He said he will ask Labor Counsel if an election worker would have to be paid if they are asked to stay home. Ms. Curren said people will be told ahead of time if they have symptoms they can't report to work. Ms. Gemme said she will let the election workers know during training if they have any symptoms they will have to stay home. Ms. Dunnell said there is a declared State of Emergency which allows more ability to be restrictive. Ms. Shonkoff recapped Ms. Gemme is going to tell the election workers to stay home if they have any symptom. Ms. Gemme discussed the mailing that will be sent to the election workers that will make them aware of the list of symptoms. Ms. Shonkoff requested Ms. Gemme to follow up with a phone call to the election workers. The Board recapped the discussion: no mobile testing, survey beforehand, verbal screening the day of, and mailing from Town Clerk. Ms. Shonkoff asked that the Town Manager be briefed on what was discussed on the mobile testing. Ms. Dunnell commented about a call she was part of with Dr Catherine Brown from the Department of Public Health and talked about the different testing and guideline to isolate. Communication Camoaian Ms. Shonkoff asked if Ms. Gemme is going to have any communication about mail-in ballot? Ms. Gemme said she created a document about"Elections and Early Voting Frequently Asked Questions" that is on the website, posted in online newspapers and on Facebook. Ms. Shonkoff shared on the screen slides from Tedi Asher, who serves as an unofficial advisor to the BOH, about early voting and mail-in ballots. She asked if there was funding and time to mail postcards to all residents. Ms. Gemme corrected some timelines. Ms. Shonkoff commented Ms. Asher will be available to attend a meeting. Ms. Delios suggested the Ms. Shonkoff reach out to Business Administrator Jayne Wellman who has been involved with the communication and public outreach. She said funding for the postcard is available. Ms. Shonkoff said she will follow up with Ms. Wellman. Ms. Gemme shared the election layout plan for the Field House and discussed some changes she made from the last presentation. Ms. Shonkoff asked about an isolation area and said the best practice is to plan for someone who wants to vote but has symptoms. Ms. Gemme requested time to think about this request, she said a ballot is not supposed to leave the barrier unless there are two election workers following. She went through a few ideas. Ms. Gemme shared the plan for the library and discussed how the foot traffic will Flow. Ms. Shonkoff reviewed the calculations and agreed a voting booth should be removed. She let Ms. Gemme know the BOH appreciates all her hard work. Covid-19 Numbers Page 1 3 Ms. Shonkoff said the number of active cases in Reading decreased but the deaths increased. She said the State reporting numbers are similar. Ms. Harris said when contact tracing first started the nurses developed teams. The decision was when someone accepts a case they work on the case start to finish and each person closes out their own case. The number of deaths, number of recovered and number of lots to follow up is reported daily by 4:00 PM to the Health Agent, which is forwarded to Incident Command. She explained the discrepancy came about with one of the assisted living buildings. A large number of the cases could not be closed right away even if recovered. In Maven they were closed out but it could take Epidemiology up to 4 weeks. The Director of Nursing kept reporting symptoms, so the case remained open and not necessarily recovered. It was later verified by Epidemiology a lot of patients have chronic disease and completed their quarantined time. Ms. Harris concluded the delay was not the fault of the nurses on the case; and said there has been further clarification from the State on cases that can be closed out. The Board agreed the explanation makes sense and thanked Ms. Harris. Return to Work Protocol Ms. Shonkoff asked what is the best way for the town to communicate to staff the return to work protocol. Ms. Delios informed the Board the Town Manager communicated to her he is still working on this and will follow up soon. Ms. Shonkoff responded this discussion can be tabled until the next Command Meeting. Ms. Vlasuk informed the Board she will not be available for the next meeting. Ouannapowitt Playhouse Ms. Shonkoff asked if the Quannapowitt Playhouse submitted a protocol to be reviewed? Ms. Delios replied the town received some information but not a detail drawing. Ms. Shonkoff said Reading Recreation has cancelled all summer concerts. She said the Performance Venue Guidance Order will have to be reviewed. Ms. Delios said Donna Corbett from Quannapowitt Playhouse would like to do a short production in the parking lot while maintain social distancing. She said there will be multiple performances. After a discussion, the Board agreed it should be reviewed by Command. Ms. Shonkoff said it will be tabled until Monday. Covid-19 Website Update Ms. Shonkoff said The Business Administrator Jayne Wellman will update the Covid-19 information that is on the website. Ms. Dunnell brought forward a few questions she had about the website: Suggested taking down the Mask Order that is on the website, because the one from the State is enforced; • Does the BOH have to rescind the Mask Order; and . There should be a link from the town website to the State website After a discussion, Ms. Dunnell agreed to follow up with Ms. Wellman about all items that need to be updated on the website. Mr. Sexton cautioned the language about rescinding the Mask Order should be carefully worded for people to understand the State issued an enforcement. Ms. Shonkoff said items can be removed from the website without having to replace with an explanation. Mr. Sexton suggested language for the motion. Ms. Shonkoff requested holding off on the motion until the Order is reviewed by the Board. She said she will table this until a later meeting. Ms. Shonkoff congratulated Ms. Dunnell on her presentation to the Select Board. Ms. Vlasuk brought forward an idea that would need approval from Command, a mask distribution for children before the schools reopen. Mr. Sexton agreed this should go to Command so Superintendent Doherty can review and to make sure work isn't being Page 14 duplicated because masks are being ordered through the Facilities Department. Ms. Curren replied there are pediatric masks similar to the adult masks. Ms. Vlasuk said she knows companies that have the masks and will get quotes. Ms. Curren asked the age of the children. Ms. Vlasuk replied school age children. Ms. Shonkoff said it makes sense to bring to Command to see what Health can do about the distribution. Senior Van Ms. Shonkoff said there was a question brought up at Command meeting about the senior van. The Board previously received information on transportation recommendations from another town. Ms. Dunnell forwarded an update on guidance from the State on transportation. Ms. Shonkoff asked if there is a demand for the senior van? Mr. Sexton said he doesn't think there is a demand. Ms. Delios said the need for the senior van is not critical but there have been inquiries about the ride to get to the supermarket. Ms. Shonkoff asked if this should be tabled until a higher demand or the Board draft a protocol for a limit use. Ms. Delios said if the van can be available for a handful of residents it would be a meaningful service to provide. Ms. Curren said if plexi-glass needs to be installed it could take time. Ms. Delios said she will get more information about the layout of the van. Ms. Shonkoff said the Fire Department is contacting other towns to see about their protocols. This will be tabled until after another meeting. Enforcement Ms. Shonkoff said the Board should start to think about enforcement policies and should fines should be issued. Mr. Sexton said signs should be installed on the field to make clear a permit is needed to use. He recommended warning the first time and a $100 fine the second. Ms. Shonkoff opined it is potentially a different situation if someone is holding an event with 200 people during a pandemic. Ms. Dunnell agreed the Board needs to have time for full descriptions. Ms. Shonkoff said will add this item to a future meeting. Other Ms. Dunnell brought forward the MAHB Guide received from Ms. Shonkoff. Ms. Shonkoff explained she wanted to share with the new members. She commented how grateful she was to the Board and Ms. Delios for their work. Ms. Delios informed the Board she shared the meeting invite with RCN so they will start taping the meetings. Ms. Vlasuk confirmed she will be doing her report the first Thursday of the month. On a motion by Ms. Dunnell and seconded by Ms. Curren, the Board of Health voted to adjourn at 9:21 PM by a vote of 3-0-0. Roll call vote: Eleanor Shonkoff-Yes, Kerry Dunnell-Yes, Paula Curren-Yes Page 1 5